Introducing Zombie-ing, the Latest (and Most Confusing) Dating Trend

Just when you’d wrapped your head around what the heck “ghosting” means, those crazy millennials had to go and come up with a brand-new dating term for you to decipher. Introducing the latest development in the increasingly difficult business of finding love in a digital age—zombie-ing.

Zombie-ing is what happens when the person who previously ghosted you (i.e., showed interest before totally cutting off communication without an explanation) comes back from the dead (you know, like a zombie).

Here’s how it might go down: You find a match on the dating app du jour, feel cautiously optimistic as you message back and forth (you both have pugs—it’s meant to be!) and maybe you even go on a few dates where the chemistry is on fire. But then all of a sudden, your texts go unanswered. Did he get into an accident? Was his phone (and laptop and tablet) stolen? Should you contact the authorities? And then it dawns on you—you’ve been ghosted. Whatever, his loss. So you return to your pre-crush life, months pass and then BAM! You get a text from your former flame out of the blue (“hey stranger, long time no speak”). Or maybe that flirtation from last year suddenly likes your Instagram post after months of radio silence. Yep, you’re being zombie-d.

When you’re a victim of zombie-ing, it’s tempting to respond or fall down the “WTF does it all mean?” rabbit hole. But the best course of action, guys? Ignore it. Some things are better left unsaid dead.